What to Expect: Logic School (7th & 8th Grades)

English (7th and 8th Grades)

Seventh and Eighth Grade Composition & Literature emphasizes critical reading and writing skills. In preparation for Rhetoric School, students learn analytical and higher order thinking skills through the close-reading of different literary genres, class discussions, and small group work. An emphasis is placed on the writing process to help students develop an understanding of persuasive writing genres with a focus on Classical Argument. Students polish grammar skills with an emphasis on punctuation, parts of speech, and correct word usage.

Students learn to think through arguments, to contemplate cause and effect relationships, and to consider how elements of writing and literature fit together into logical frameworks. In logic school, the subject of English emphasizes the logic of writing (paragraph construction, supporting a thesis, and developing ideas) and the logic of critical reading (reading strategies as well as the beginnings of close-textual analysis) with a particular focus on learning to speak and write elegantly.

Texts: Our literary emphasis is based on the year’s historical cycle:

Cycle 1 texts have included The Eagle of the Ninth, Black Ships Before Troy, The Odyssey, Tales of Greek Heroes, The Bronze Bow, Tales of Ancient Egypt, The Golden Goblet, Tales from China and various poems.

Cycle 2 texts have included The Sword and the Stone, The Canterbury Tales, Beowulf, The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood, and various poems.

Cycle 3 texts have included The Pilgrim’s Progress, Treasure Island, Robinson Crusoe, A Christmas Carol, Narrative on the Life of Frederick Douglass, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Washington Irving stories, Edgar Allen Poe stories, and various poems.

Cycle 4 texts have included The Scarlet Pimpernel, Red Badge of Courage, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, The Importance of Being Earnest, The Time Machine, Little Women, And Then There Were None, Fahrenheit 451, and various poems.

In composition, our curriculum is Bible-Based Writing Lessons (Institute for Excellence in Writing) in seventh grade, and The Elegant Essay (Institute for Excellence in Writing) in eighth grade. Both grades use Our Mother Tongue (Canon Press) for grammar.

History (7th and 8th Grades)

As a logic level history course, special attention is given to building basic analytical skills. As such, students will participate in regular discussion and debate as well as the examination of primary sources. This course will pay special attention to the causes and effects of historical events and analyzing the character and motivations of certain historical figures. In addition, students will learn the importance of using credible sources and proper documentation. The course will also explore the relationship between history and geography. As such, students will have the opportunity to examine and memorize maps while gaining an understanding of how history and geography influence each other. Finally, students will examine how God used and directed events to prepare the world for the coming of Christ. As a part of this process, students will have the chance to teach the class about ancient art or architecture.

Texts (we read 5 – 7 per year, according to historical cycle emphasis) The Story of Mankind, The World in Ancient TImes, The Spartan, Stories of the East from Heroditus, Famous Men of Rome, Plutarch’s Lives for Boys and Girls, The Story of the 13 Colonies and the Great Republic, A Little History of the World, A Tale of Two Cities, the Diary of Anna Green Winslow, Hero Tales, Recollections of The Jersey Prison Ship, Journals of Lewis and Clark, Story of the World, Volume 4, Modern Age, Gettysburg, Hey, Mac!, The Wild West

Pre-Algebra (1 credit, Grade 7)

Pre-Algebra is the last time students will be exposed to a broad overview of mathematical concepts. This course emphasizes the use of algebraic concepts and vocabulary to describe familiar math content like computation, ratios, geometry & trigonometry.

Text: Pre-algebra: An Accelerated Course (Dolciani, ed.; HMH)

Algebra 1 (1 credit, Grade 8)

This course “presents the normal content of first-year high school algebra. It is designed to prepare students for a subsequent course in either geometry of second-year algebra. … The unifying theme is the concept of expression … The first part of the book is carefully sequenced to lead to the Quadratic Formula by mid-year.” – Paul Foerster

Life Science (Grade 7)

This course teaches a comprehensive overview of concepts and observations of living things. The 5 Units we will cover include: Foundations of Life Science, Heredity and the Origin of Life, Concepts in Microbiology, Concepts in the Animal Kingdom, and The Nature of the Environment. Laboratory experiments will be utilized to develop and reinforce scientific concepts.

Text: Life Science (Bob Jones Press)

Physical Science (Grade 8)

This course is an introductory study of the physics and chemistry of nature. The author begins with the broad categories of matter, energy and intelligent design as a foundation from which to develop additional studies like forces, fields, motion, waves, electricity, and magnetism. Students will appreciate the structure and organization of the “laws of nature” by learning the underlying basic laws of physics and chemistry.

Text: Physical Science (Novare Science and Math)

Introductory Logic (Grade 8 – 1 semester)

This course will introduce students to formal and informal logic. The course begins by teaching students how to identify, create, and analyse categorical statements. Then, students will explore some of the most common fallacies and errors in everyday reasoning. This course will help students understand and evaluate the arguments of others as well as enabling them to become more coherent writers and speakers.

Latin (Grade 7 and 8)

Our various Latin courses provide and reinforce a foundational understanding of the mechanics, grammar, and vocabulary of the Latin language. Students will learn how to accurately construe and decode Latin texts using various verb tenses across three different types of verb conjugations, four different noun declensions as well as associated adjective and adverbial modifiers. The familiarity gained by the student of this ancient language opens up worlds of insight available only through examination of texts from antiquity in their original voice. Providence requires 2 years of rhetoric-school Latin (2 years beyond 7th grade); opportunities to take Latin extend all the way to Senior-level AP Latin, where students translate great literary and historical texts, focusing on Virgil and Julius Caesar.

Text: Latin Alive!, Classical Academic Press

Bible: Theology Basics (Grade 7 and 8)

In these two years of Bible, students continue reading through the Bible (a process that begins in 5th Grade) and encounter a framework Biblical interpretation. These classes cover systematic theology (Grudem), epistemology and worldview (Piper) and walks through the entire Bible in light of historical-critical exegesis. Students will learn to read the Bible the way its authors intended it to be read. This will further allow the students to extrapolate its contents and applications to their lives in today’s world while being driven by the meta-narrative of Scripture. We also have a “mercy ministry” focus in 7th grade, where we read Generous Justice.